Artificial Intelligence: What it is and what it isn’t
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Over the past week, several articles about AI caught my attention. Like many other tools, AI is powerful and has great value when used properly. To understand how to use it well, we need to know what Artificial Intelligence is and isn’t.
What is AI?
AI is a potent statistical analysis tool. The platforms available today can quickly process almost unimaginable amounts of data. Its most valuable feature is the ability to adjust the outputs based on changes in the data. AI can assess and process unexpected data and deliver meaningful analysis without human intervention.
What holds AI back?
Two things limit AI. The first is data. By definition, all of the data you have is historical. It may not be very old, but it is from the past. There is no such thing as perfect data. Systems can validate data to ensure it meets specific requirements. Systems cannot determine whether your data is correct. For example, Sam, Samuel, and Samantha are all valid names; only one is the correct legal name for a specific entry. It is also impossible to gather all of the data. There will always be gaps in your data set that require interpretation.
The second thing holding back AI is its algorithms. The reliability of the analysis is only as good as the underlying instructions and training data. If there is a fundamental change due to an acquisition or unpredicted external event, the algorithms will continue to apply outdated logic until either they are updated or enough new data is collected to cause the AI to adjust its output.
What AI is not?
AI is not a predictor of the future. We all heard the disclaimer that “Past performance is no guarantee of future results.” As business leaders, we look at trends and make decisions based on whether we believe the trends will look like in the future.
Artificial intelligence is not intelligent. AI cannot replace human judgment.
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